Black Lightning

Чёрная Молния (2009)

Timing: 1:42 (102 min)

6.314/10
194

5.355/10
140634

5.6/10
5800

All about film

Video 1

Photo 5

Actors and characters

Release date

2009-12-28

Country

Russia, United States

Production

Focus Features, Bazelevs Production, Tabbak

Genre

Science Fiction, Action, Adventure, Thriller, Drama

Budget

$8 000 000

Revenue

$21 500 000

Website

http://31-12-2009.ru/

Director

Dmitry Kiselev, Alexander Voitinsky

Actors

Grigoriy Dobrygin, Ekaterina Vilkova, Viktor Verzhbitskiy, Yekaterina Vasilyeva, Juozas Budraitis, Ivan Zhidkov, Sergey Garmash, Ekaterina Starshova, Elena Valyushkina, Valeriy Zolotukhin
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Alexandr Talal, Dmitriy Aleynikov

Producer

Timur Bekmambetov, Alexander Voitinsky, Iva Stromilova

Operator

Sergey Trofimov

Composer

Artist

Audition

Editing

Dmitriy Aleynikov, Ilya Lebedev, Alexander Andryuschenko
All team (19)

• The filming lasted 44 shooting days, the first of which was December 31, 2008.
• According to Dmitry Tokoyakov, VFX supervisor at Bazelevs VFX, 700 frames of complex computer graphics were created in five months, 70 of which were drawn from scratch.
• After consulting with aviation experts and industrial designers, the animators settled on a Volga-21 with retractable flaps and retractable wheels. A total of 100 models of the car were made. To ensure it flew according to the laws of aerodynamics, a special aviation simulator was developed.
• Most of the computer graphics shots were made based on footage filmed with stunt performers. For example, a real cannon was built to film a car crashing through a wall, firing cars weighing 700 kg at a muzzle velocity of 90 km/h.
• Moscow was filmed from high-rise locations using specialized filming equipment. Missing fragments of the image were then supplemented with computer graphics based on photographs.
• 150 people worked on the graphics for the film 'Black Lightning'. In addition to Bazelevs VFX specialists, employees from 14 large computer graphics studios were involved in creating individual scenes.
• The 'Gimbal' hydraulic system allowed for simulating flight in the car. It felt like being on a rollercoaster. Grigory Dobrygin and Viktor Verzhbitsky spent over a week on the 'Gimbal'.
• Flights over Moscow were filmed using a radio-controlled camera that traveled along a cable stretched between two massive cranes.
• The stunt 'Volga GAZ-21' accelerates to 100 km/h in 6 seconds. It was equipped with an upgraded engine.
• The finished 'Black Lightning' weighs four tons, accelerates to 300 km/h, and can hover in the air.
• At the moment when Dima's family is decorating the chandelier in the living room, a clip from episode 127 of the TV series "Daddy's Daughters" (2007-2013) is playing in the background.
• The studio filming of the movie took place in Pavilion No. 9 of Mosfilm. Its area is 1306.4 square meters. It is the second largest pavilion at the studio.
• In the scene where "Black Lightning" knocks down an icicle falling on Nastya, a bouquet of roses falls out of the car. At the same time, the car's windows and doors are closed both before and after the collision with the ice.
• Early in the film, where the main character and his "friend" are driving in a friend’s Mercedes, shots from the side of the car show that the car's automatic transmission is in "P" (park), which naturally prevents the car from moving. Nevertheless, they are driving and at a fairly good speed.
• A hydraulic "Gimbal" system allowed them to simulate flight in a car. It rattled around inside like a rollercoaster. Grigory Dobrygin and Viktor Verzhbitsky spent over a week on the "Gimbal."
• In the scene where Dima's family is decorating the chandelier in the living room, a clip from episode 127 of the series "Daddy's Daughters" (2007-2013) can be seen in the background.
• Even at the beginning of the film, when the main character and his "friend" are driving in the friend's Mercedes, shots from the side of the car show that the vehicle's automatic transmission is in "P" (parking), which naturally prevents the car from moving. Nevertheless, they are driving at a fairly good speed.